


Untimely Comfort

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Episode: s03e15 Dead Irish Writers, F/F, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-07-27
Updated: 2008-07-27
Packaged: 2019-05-30 13:31:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15097679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: Abbey never imagined CJ would be so comforting.





	Untimely Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

  
Author's notes: the characters are not mine, but as many others before me I have fallen in love with them  


* * *

\Abbey waited for Donna and Amy to get half way down the stairs before she whispered CJ’s name. “Claudia, wait just a minute.”

“Ma’am?” CJ asked as she turned her head around to look at the first lady. The request was so soft CJ wasn’t sure if maybe she had just imagined that the First Lady had spoken her name. Not to mention that she was more than a little light headed from all the wine she had just consumed. 

“CJ, wait just a minute, I want to talk to you before we go back into the party.” With that Abbey turned, walked back up the stairway and disappeared down the corridor to the left. 

CJ began to wonder if she must simply be imagining this whole night. They had just spent nearly an hour in the residence having a heart felt and much needed girl time, complete with gossip and booze, and most importantly good friends. The First Lady was now calling CJ to come join her again, but without the other ladies. CJ took one glance down the stairs, Donna and Amy had already reached Josh’s questioning at the bottom of the stairs. She could feel his need for control from 40 feet away, “Where have you all been? Do you know you have left the party with the guest of honor? What did you expect the rest of us to be doing?” CJ rolled her eyes, reached down and grabbed her dress then began to walk back up the stairs, whatever the First Lady wanted to do was certainly better than listening to lecture from Josh on proper party etiquette.

She looked down the dimly lit hall to the left as she reached the top of the stairs, and could just barely make out the silhouette of the First Lady near the end. As she got closer she could see the anguish on her face. “Ma’am is everything okay? Do I need to go get someone?”

“No, CJ, I just – I just needed to process things for a few minutes before I head back down to the firing squad. Can you believe that jackass invited the entire Washington social scene, when he knows good and well I’m completely consumed with the results tomorrow from the medical board?”

“I – uh – I thought we had discussed this, Abbey, you know we need to get back down there. The President was trying to help by throwing this party.”

“I know, CJ. Actually I wanted to ask for your opinion, privately away from everyone else, your opinion about what Donna said. I know she was shocked and will never quit apologizing, but is she right?” Abbey choked up on the last few words, and turned her face away from CJ as she spoke. She was a proud strong woman and not accustomed to asking for other’s help. But she needed advice she could trust, and she could think of no wiser woman than CJ Cregg. As she waited for CJ to answer she slowly sank down against the wall, coming to rest on the floor at CJ’s feet.

CJ took a deep breath, and looked down at the First Lady. She looked so insecure, nothing like the roaring lioness that normally ruled the White House. CJ searched for the words, but came up with nothing. She decided to follow the First Lady’s lead and sit down, it looked like this might be a long conversation. After not so gracefully maneuvering the difficulties of getting seated on the floor while wearing a rather revealing and constraining sequin gown, CJ looked over to the First Lady.  
“You know Abbey, I don’t know that there is a right and wrong here, you did things that are clearly in violation of medical ethics, but you did them from love. You didn’t break any laws, the board doesn’t even have to formally punish you. I think you are simply over thinking it, I think there is nothing you can do tonight so you should try to let it rest.”

“CJ,” Abbey said sternly as she grabbed the Press Secretary’s wrist, “I didn’t ask your opinion so that you could blow me off or coddle my esteem the way everyone else is doing. Simply tell me your opinion, not as a Press Secretary, not as a high level Democrat, but as a woman, as an average citizen with a good sense of morals, is Donna right? Should I be reprimanded because I really did screw up?”

CJ tried to wiggle her wrist out of the First Lady’s death clamp, slightly impressed with the strength demonstrated by her unassuming physic. “Abbey, I don’t know.” She paused and took a deep breath before continuing, “I don’t know if Donna’s right, I think maybe she is, maybe you are clearly in the wrong.” Abbey turned her eyes away as CJ said this, she never imagined it would hurt this much to hear CJ say she was in the wrong. CJ continued, “But like I said earlier it’s not the end of the world, or even your life. You have other things you can throw your energy into, you are a talented, gifted, smart, and passionate woman, this isn’t going to take any of those things away.” 

Abbey closed her eyes, sighed and leaned her head back against the wall slowly loosening her grip on CJ’s wrist. “I know that, I know that my medical license doesn’t make me it’s just-” Abbey couldn’t finish the sentence. How could she explain to CJ, who dominated a man’s world, that without her medical license she was just someone’s trophy wife. 

CJ stared at the First Lady’s hand as the silence settled over them. She was out of words, she believed Abbey hung the moon, she always had, but there was no way to convince Abbey of that. She slowly turned Abbey’s hand over in her lap and began tracing the lines on her palm. Abbey let out a little sigh of relief as CJ continued to massage her hand. CJ looked up at the soft lines of Abbey’s face, how with her head tilted back the dim light in the hall caught the jewels on Abbey’s necklace and how the dead silence of the air seemed to move up and down with each breath in Abbey’s chest. She shook her head, she couldn’t let her thoughts get away from her, no matter how much wine she had, this was the First Lady, one of her dearest friends. CJ knew the past few months had been hard on Abbey with the possibility of losing her medical license, and everyone heard the First Couple fighting more often than ever before. Now was not a time to be watching Abbey’s every breath, but then Abbey seemed completely relaxed and comfortable as CJ’s fingers continued to rub circles into her palm and wrist. CJ grew more daring as the silence continued and began to massage Abbey’s arm. Her thumbs pushing softly up and back down. She slowly turned her body toward Abbey’s so that she could give the massage her full attention. She may never be able to act on her feelings toward Abbey, but right now - in this moment she could comfort her. The hints of a smile appeared on Abbey’s face as CJ’s massage reached her elbow. She opened her eyes to look at the Press Secretary. CJ’s hair had fallen down in front of her face as she concentrated so hard on the massage, she didn’t even notice Abbey now studying her with the same intensity CJ so often watched Abbey with. 

Abbey took a deep breath, and slowly leaned toward CJ. She gently used her nose to nudge the hair out of the way right as her lips found CJ’s partly opened, almost as if CJ had already been imagining that she was kissing the First Lady. CJ drew back a little at the first contact, shocked, all she had ever wanted was to touch Abbey, to kiss her and hold her tight. But she never expected Abbey would make the first move. As CJ drew back a smile spread over Abbey’s face as she leaned in further to regain contact. This time CJ stayed perfectly still not wanting to do anything to make the moment end. Abbey’s tongue began to slowly explore CJ’s mouth feeling softly the corners that so often smirked at reporters and going deeper into the heart of CJ, daring CJ to return the affection. Abbey continued to increase the pressure bringing her hands up to cup CJ’s strong jaw. At the touch of Abbey’s hands on her face, CJ could no longer hold back. She returned the kiss with every ounce of her being, each stroke of her tongue against Abbey’s was filled with the love she had built over the past 4 years. As Abbey paused for a quick breath, CJ took the opportunity to suck on Abbey’s lower lip, holding it in her teeth while flicking it with her tongue. Slowly drawing back, sending visible shivers down the First Lady’s spine. As their lips meet again CJ was clearly in charge using her height to angle Abbey back up against the wall, while her hands began to slowly work up and down Abbey’s ribcage. As CJ’s thumbs brushed against Abbey’s chest, which CJ thought was far beyond what Lord John Marbury had earlier called magnificent, it was possibly simply divine, but as her thumbs brushed it Abbey let out a soft almost inaudible moan into CJ’s mouth. The vibration sent CJ over the edge, and she increased the pressure both with her tongue and her hands on the edge of Abbey’s dress.

Abbey couldn’t believe what was happening, she was sitting in a dark corner not 200 yards away from the entire White House staff and she was necking with a female, not just any female but the highest ranking most visible female to work in the West Wing in 200 years. Abbey knew she had started it, but didn’t think through how she could end it. CJ felt so amazing, her tongue and teeth and hands were making her feel things that she hadn’t felt since she moved into the White House. She could tell time was going fast, if she didn’t do something soon CJ was going to have her moaning in the middle of the hallway. Coming up for a breath, she pushed CJ back a little, “CJ, we-” she took a deep breath, and tried no to make eyecontact, “CJ, we can’t do this. I – I know I kissed you, but Jed is down the hall. Everyone is down the hall. I love him. I don’t know, I don’t know.” She paused and looked at CJ’s face. Was there anyway she understood? Was this just a sudden burst of passion from CJ as well, or did CJ-? Did CJ always dream of this? Abbey couldn’t let herself think about that. She knew from time to time that CJ dated women, but surely CJ hadn’t been waiting for Abbey. “We can’t do this, CJ I know you understand, not to say that just now wasn’t fantastic, in fact-” Abbey trailed off not knowing how to say that the kiss was more mind blowing than when she lay alone waiting for Jed to get to bed fantasizing about the Press Secretary.

“No, no Abbey, I completely understand. I, I shouldn’t have let it happen. I got carried away.” CJ began to gather her dress and stand up.

“Claudia, it wasn’t just you who got carried away, and in another life, it would be different.”

“No Ma’am I completely understand, here let me help you up.” CJ reached down and offered a hand to Abbey. As they both caught their breath and smoothed out their dresses. “I guess we should go back down, I know the President is ready to give you his toast.”

As they walked back down the stairs no one seemed to notice they had been gone. CJ quickly walked over to Donna and Amy, joining them in staring at the room full of guest. Abbey followed, knowing that she needed to tell Donna again that she was not in trouble, in fact Abbey was proud of the young woman for speaking her mind. CJ reached up and rubbed her forehead, trying to get a grasp on the events of the past hour and a half. The crowd seemed to have energized Abbey, she regained her signature smirk as she meddled in Josh and Amy’s business and arranged for the band to play the Canadian anthem for Donna.

****more to come later, feedback appreciated as this is my first story


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